Air-conditioning apparatus and method for passenger cars



April]! 3% 11935., H, A gs 11,999,719

AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PASSENGER CARS Filed Jan. 15,1931 5 Sheets-Sheet l J. H. DAVIS Apriil 3@, 119350 AIR CONDITIONINGAPPARATUS AND'NIIEZ'IHOD FOR PASSENGER CARS Filed Jan. 15, 1931 sSheets-Sheet 2 J. H. DAVIS AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS AND METHOD FORPASSENGER CARS Filed Jan. 15, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 m 81 m x PatentedApr. 36% i93$ UNETE i @TATES LQQQJEQ AHR-CONDE'EIQNHNG APPARATU ANDMETHOD FOR PASSENGER CARS Application January 115,,

22 Claims.

This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for conditioning airin railway passenger cars, that is to say, freeing the air from alldust, soot, cinders and other foreign matter, controlling itstemperature and humidity, and efiectin'g its proper circulationthroughout the car, while eliminating drafts. More particularly myinvention relates to improvements in the air conditioning methods andmeans set forth in my prior applications Serial Numbers 400,928 and400,929, filed October 19, 1929.

The main object of my present invention is to provide a method of andapparatus for conditioning air whereby the air may be purified andeither cooled or heated and humidified or not, as occasion may require.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method of and meansfor heating the air whereby the interior of the car may be heated with.greater facility and atless cost than by the use or" the steam heatingpipes or coils commonly employed, and whereby the use of the latter inwhole or in part may be dispensed with.

A. stiil further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus forcarrying the invention into practical effect which'embodies novel meansfor cooling, heating, humidifying and circulating the air andcontrolling the actions of such means, whereby a simple, reliable andeficient apparatus adapted for use at all seasons of the year isproduced.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention,-

Fig. l is a sectional plan view of a railway passenger car embodyingmeans for carrying my invention into practical effect.

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a similar view taken on line ii-ti of Fig. 1.

Fig. i is a longitudinal section on line t-t of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a. sectional plan view similar to Fig. 1 through one end ofthe car, showing the parts on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail transverse section through the half deckand air conduits at one side of the car.

Fig. 7 is a schematic perspective view of an equipment designed to beapplied to a car to carry out my invention.

In the drawings I have shown an air conditioning equipment for anindividual car system, that is to say, the car is a unit completelyequipped with the necessary appliances for air conditioning 1931,Serial! No. 5%,996

purposes, with the possible exception of a source of heat supply for theheating means, which may be that of the heating equipment of a train ofwhich the car forms a part.

The car i may be a railway passenger coach of generally conventionalconstruction, or of any approved type preferably having the usual enddoors 2 and windows provided with double sashes 3, which sashes may bekept closed in order to prevent undue entrance of unconditioned air andundue escape of the contained conditioned air, as thorough and effectiveventilation will be afforded by the air conditioning apparatus of thecar.

The car is provided at its top, and preferably at or near one endthereof, with an air intake chamber or compartment it, preferablylocated above the vestibule at one end of the car, within which isarranged a conditioning unit embodying a casing t for the elements ofthe conditioning mechanism in communication at its outer and inner endswith the inner and outer ends of said compartment 41. The outer end ofthis casing is provided with horizontal transversely extending air inletslots t, and in said casing between said slots and inner end of thecasing are arranged in regular order a combined air humidifying andwater filter device 77, a baffie type of excess moisture eliminator andmechanical filter t, and a temperature conditioning coil 9. Thehumidifying and water filter device consists of sprayers for deliveringwater in very finely divided condition into that portion of the casingin which they are arranged, which forms a filtration and humidifyingchamber within which all or a portion of the air is washed and freedfrom dust, soot, cinders and other foreign materials and humidifled tothe desired degree. The air on its flow through the casing then passesthrough and between the eliminator baiiles t, which relieve it of anyexcess moisture. The humidified air then comes in contact with thesurfaces of the coil 9, and then discharges into the compartment 5 atthe inner end of the casing, whereby the air is cooled or heated to meetdesired conditions.

For the purpose of admitting fresh atmospheric air when desired, the caris provided with fresh air inlets It at opposite sides of thecompartment t, which inlets may be controlled by dampers or shutters iI, independently operable by hand-controlled devices 62 on the inside ofthe car, so that the shutters may be opened by a porter or attendant toadmit fresh atmospheric air when desired to prevent vitiation of the airwithin the car. The fresh air entering each inlet it] may be pre-heatedby means of a pre-heating coil l3 when the external atmospherictemperature is sufiiciently low to require or make desirable thepre-heating of the air prior to its further treatment. Suitable means,in practice, may be employed for the removal or discharge from thecasing 5 of the impurities separated from the air, and also suitablemeans may be employed within or in the region of the air inlets III toprevent entrance with the air of rain, sleet or snow.

The chamber 4, casing 5 and the air conditioning parts immediatelyassociated therewith are preferably arranged in the space at the top ofthe car between the side walls or risers l4 extending from the ceilingplates l5 to the upper roof deck l6 and on the outer sides of whichrisers are arranged the half decks ll. Over these half decks ll arearranged, in accordance with my invention, walls l8 each covered by aheating insulating layer l9 and forming with the associated half deck I!an air circulating channel extending longitudinally of the car.Advantage is taken of the spaces formed between the parts l4, l5 and I!to provide air distributing channels 2 I, extending parallel with thechannels 20, and in communication therewith at intervals through ducts22, each preferably provided with a controlling damper or shutter 23.Each of these dampers or shutters 23 is preferably of adjustable typeand manually operable by controlling means comprising a rack 24 engagedby a pinion 25 on one end of a shaft 26 extending at its opposite endinto the car and having an operating hand wheel 21, whereby the damperor shutter may be adjusted to the desired degree. These dampers may beemployed to control the passage of air from the circulating channels 20to the distributing channels 2| for supply to the interior of the carthrough suitable air inlets in the ceiling plates I 5, to regulate theamount of volume of air admitted to the car throughout the lengththereof. In order to avoid gushing of the air through the ducts 22 andto cause the air to flow easily through the air inlets 28 in the plates15, suitable baffle devices 29 may be disposed in the conduits 2|,whereby the elimination of all drafts will be secured.

The ceiling plates l5, except where arranged beneath the compartment 4,may correspond in arrangement to the conventional ceiling plates, butare of slotted type, of grille type or louvre type or otherwise suitablyconstructed to provide the air inlets 28 for the supply of theconditioned air to the interior of the car. These ceiling plates or theportions thereof, however, which form the floor of the compartment 4 areprovided with sets of air passages respectively controlled by dampers orsets of shutters 30, 3| and 32, which may be of pivoted vane type. Theshutters 30, as shown, communicate with the compartment 4 in front orbeyond the outer end of the casing 5, and are provided to govern theupfiow of a portion of the air from the interior of the car for thepurpose of humidifying and re-circulating such portion of the air. Theshutters 3| are provided to allow a portion of the air to pass from theinterior of the car upwardly into the inner portion of the casing 5 forcontact with the coil 9, so that such portion of the air may be cooledor heated and re-circulated without being rehumidified. The shutters 32are arranged for the passage of a portion of the air from the interiorof the car upwardly into the inner portion of the compartment 4, toadapt such portion of the air to be re-circulated without beinghumidified, cooled or heated, the shutters 32 forming a bypass wherebythe air from the car may be diverted and prevented from passing throughthe air treatment devices in the casing 5 and thereby re-circulated,without conditioning treatment, from the interior of the car to thecompartment 4 and through the channels 20 and 2| back to the interior ofthe car again. For the purpose of drawing air either from the exterioror interior of the car into the compartment 4 and forcing the airthrough the channels 20 and 2|, motor driven fans 33 are preferablyemployed and arranged within the portion of the compartment 4 betweenthe inner end wall of said compartment and the inner open end of thecasing 5, said fans communicating with the inner ends of the channels 20and operating, therefore, to draw air from the exterior or interior ofthe car into the compartment 4 through any of the air inlet passageswhich may be fully or partly open and to force such air through thecirculating and distributing channels 20 and 2|.

It will thus be understood that fresh air may be taken in through theinlets I 0 when desired and circulated and commingled with the air inthe car, to keep such air in a wholesome state. If the outside air istaken in through the inlets l0 and filtered when the outside temperatureis low, say below or R, such air may be preheated by supplying a heatingmedium to the coils 13 to raise the temperature of the incoming air to50 or 55 F. before it passes into the humidifying chamber, thetemperature of the water supplied to which should be a few degreeshigher than that of the fresh air. The air thus taken in and humidifiedto the desired degree may be, during the summer months cooled by meansof the coil 9, or, during the winter months heated by means of the coil9, before passing into the inner end of the compartment 4 and beingforced by the fans 33 into the circulating channels. The air within thecar may be re-circulated, with or without conditioning treatment, andcommingled or not with air admitted through the passages Ill, as theshutters or dampers controlling the passages It) may be opened or closedat any time and, if closed, the fans 33 will operate to draw air fromthe interior of the car through such of the shutters 30, 3| or 32 whichmay be open at the time, and force it through the channels 20 and 2|back into the car, which circulation may be kept up with or withouthumidifying, cooling or heating or otherwise conditioning the air aslong as desired.

Should it be desired to humidify a portion of the air in the car whileit is being IiB-Cll'Clll3t8d, the shutters 30 may be opened, and the airdrawn from the interior of the car into the compartment 4 will bere-humidified before its return to the car, to keep the atmosphere ofthe car in a proper humidified condition. Should it be desired to heator cool the air, without humidification, this can be effected by closingthe shutters 30 and opening the shutters 3|, and, at the same time, ifdesired, another portion of the air may be circulated without thermallytreating it by opening the shutters 32. By closing the shutters 30 and3| and opening the shutters 32 all the air which is being re-circulatedwill be drawn directly from the car into the fans 33, without passagethrough the conditioning means, and will be forced through the channels20 and 2| back into the car, as will be readily understood.

In the summer the water spray device may be cut out of action andhumidity control may be effected by passing the relatively warm air overassume the cooling coils ii, thus reducing its temperature andconsequently its relative humidity. With the water supply device cut outoi action its cooperatlng hygrostat titl is also, of course, cut out orservice. The air to be cooled and dehumidified may then enter throughthe shutters till to pass over the cooling coils d and then be mixedwith by-pass air drawn in through the air intalre ill. The mixture oithe by-pass air and conditioned air is then drawn into the fans anddischarged through the supply ducts ti into the space occupied by thepassengers.

Controlling means for the dampers or shutters lit, 35 and 32 is providedcomprising pneumatic motors li t and lit for respectively actuating thedampers or shutters ht and lit, and on the shafts of a damper shutteroi. set El and a damper shutter oi set 82 are cranlr arms coupled by aconnecting rod fill so arranged and operating as to alternately open andclose the dampers ti and till on its opposite movements, so that whenthe damper shutters Eli are closed the damper shutters $32 will be open,and vice versa. The motors 3t and till are connected by feed pipes tiltand 539, respectively, with an air supply pipe it leading from an airreservoir ll, whereby air may be supplied to the motors to actuate thesaid motors. in pipe it is a pressure gage d2, cut-off cocks li, it andtil and a reliei valve to, for obvious purposes, and in pipes and 3dare, respectively, automatic control valves 38 and lid governedrespectively by a hygrostat titl and a thermostat te in the car to openand close the dampers at desired humidity and temperature degree points.When, for example, the humidity of the air within the car falls below acertain percent the hygrostat is influenced to open the damper til sothat a portion of the rte-circulated air will be drawn by the fans fromthe car through the humidifier and eliminator and humidified andpurified and forced by the fans back through the circulating anddistributing channels to the car. As soon as normal humidity conditionsof the air in the car are restored the hygrostat 3t closes the valve itand the damper lid is closed. When, on the other hand, the temperatureof the air in the car rises or falls above or below the predetermineddegree, the thermostat it opens valve tit and air is supplied to causemotor lit to open damper ti and close damper 32, so that all the air tobe are-circulated is drawn through damper iii and caused to pass withany fresh outside air admitted in contact with coil ll, whereby the airiscooled or heated and then returned through the chan nels Bil and iiito the interior of the car. When the temperature of the air in the caris returned to normal, the damper 3i is automatically closed and damper32 opened, so that a re-ciroulation of the interior air without passagethrough the treatment devices in casing t is obtained. The apparatus isthus self-governing and automatically acts to keep the air in the car inproper volume and. free from foreign materials and at proper degrees oftemperature and humidity.

Water is supplied to the spray nozzles l through a feed pipe ll! leadingfrom a motor-driven pump it, with which connects also a return pipe itfor returning to the pump the excess water from the humidifying chamber.A circuit is thus established whereby a continuous supply of water tothe humidifier is furnished. The pipe Ml is also an intake pipe forsupplying water thereto continuously or at intervals to keep the circuitproperly charged. To this end, pipe 49 is connected by a branch pipe 58,in which is a controlling and cut-0d valve ti with the outlet oi a watersupply or replenishing tank, ti, having a float-controlled inlet valveht connected with a supply pipe leading from a supply main lit leadingfrom a main source of supply of water on the car, said pipe lid beingprovided with a controlling and cut-off valve lid. This constructionadapts the humidiher water supply circuit to be automaticallyreplenished with water as required and said circuit to be cut-out ofaction when desired. The tank @22, as shown, is provided with anoverflow pipe for discharging from the car or conducting hack to thesource any excess amount oi watersupplied to the tank. It is desirableto supply the spray water in cold weather to the nozzles i at atemperature which is above the pro-heating temperature of the coil iiiand close to the temperature at which the air is to be heated by thecoil 9, when said latter coil is used as a heating coil. There isaccordingly provided in the pipe sheeting chamber ti in which isarranged a heating tube or coil connected at its inlet end with a steamsupply pipe containing a controlling and cut-oil? valve tit, andconnected at its opposite end with a trap ill and drip pipe 62 forcollection and discharge of the water oi condensation. By this means thespray water may be heated and its temperature may be kept constant bythe action oi the thermostat til governing a control valve M in the pipe59, whereby the amount of steam supplied to the tube or coil 58 isreliably controlled. Pipe lit is supplied with steam from a main litwhich may form part of the steam heating equipment oi the car orcomprise an auxiliary steam pipe supplied with steam from thelocomotive. Obviously the heater bl may be cut out of action permanentlyor temporarily by closing valve to. A basin or trough so is provided tocatch the excess water from the elements l and t which is returned tothe water circulating system via pipes ts and till.

A pipe ltd is provided for supplying steam to the coil it from the mainlit, and this pipe is provided with a controlling and cut-oil valve ill,whereby the coil it may be cut out of action whenever desired. Anotherpipe til, having therein a trap lid, is provided for discharging andcollecting the water of condensation from coil it. Pipe to also containsa controlling and cutofi valve it governed by a thermostat it arrangedin the path of the air flowing to the humidifier and eliminator, wherebythe amount of steam Passing to the coil it will be. automaticallycontrolled to regulate the pro-heating temperature to the predetermineddegree. When the coil 9 is employed as a heating coil, steam may besupplied thereto from the main til through a sup ply pipe it having acontrolling and cut-off valve l8 and a pressure gage it therein, and thewater of condensation from the coil may be co1lect-' ed and dischargedthrough a drip pipe it having a controlling and cut-oil valve l5 and atrap "it therein. Whenever the coil t is employed as a cooling coil,however, a cooling liquid or refrigerant may be supplied thereto througha pipe ll having a controlling and cut-off valve it therevalve it. Thepipes Ti and it are designed in practice to be connected with a suitablecooler or refrigerating device lorming part of a circuit comprising saidpipes and cooler and a pump for cooling and circulating water or othercooling liquid, whereby the air supplied to the car may be cooled to apredetermined temperature less than outside temperature in summerweather or under climatic conditions where cooling is necessary. It willbe evident, of course, that under general circumstances when the coil 9isemployed as a cooling coil the humidifier may be cut out of action orits humidifying action reduced to the proper degree, since the coolingof the warm fresh atmospheric air supplied to the car will automaticallyreduce its humidity to a satisfactory degree. A pan or trough '15 isprovided to catch any moisture dripping from coil 9 for drainage througha pipe 15 to pipe 15.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings,it is evident that my invention provides an air conditioning method andapparatus for cars which is adapted for use at all times of the year forpurifying the air and relieving it of all foreign materials, and at thesame time heating it or cooling it to a predetermined temperature withinthe car, which may be greater or less than outside atmospherictemperature, according to conditions. Also it will be seen that freshair may be admitted, preferably by manual control, at such intervals asmay be required to keep the contained air in a wholesome condition,which action of the contained air is promoted by the continuedre-circulation of the air. In admitting fresh air, and also inre-circulating the contained air, the amount of moisture supplied to.the air, when an increase of humidity is required, will be automaticallygoverned by means which will cause the recirculated air to pass throughthe humidifier, or not, according to the'degree of humidity of the airwhich is being circulated. Furthermore, it will be seen that the air maybe heated or cooled, with or without humidification, as desired, andthat in the re-circulation of the contained air, said air may be caused,independent of admitted fresh air, when in a proper state ofhumidification, to flow in contact with the heating or cooling coil, ornot, according to its temperature. Thus the air may always be maintainedin a high degree of purity, at a predetermined temperature, and in apredetermined state of humidity, thus ensuring the perfect atmosphericcomfort of persons traveling in the car. The provision of means forautomatically maintaining not only the dry bulb temperature of the airat the desired point but also the relative humidity of the air at thedesired percentage is an important feature of my invention.

Another important feature of my invention resides in the use of the coil9 arranged in the line of the moving air stream for heating the airwhile it is in a state of motion and being circulated. Experimentationhas shown that considerable operating economy may be obtained by heatingthe air in this manner over the general practice of heating the air bymeans of heating pipes or coils placed along the sides of the car nearthe fioor line, as by the former method a much greater proportion of theavailable heat will be taken up by the air than is possible with thepresent heating methods, and at the same time the circulation of theheated air ensures a better distribution of the heat through the car andalso gives better ventilation. It is therefore pcssible, by the use ofmy novel method of heating, to reduce the number or amount of pipes orcoils employed to heat a car equipped with my invention, with resultanteconomy in the use of steam and operation of the car.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim:-

1. The method of conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, whichconsists in passing the air through a course, humidifying and purifyingthe air in its travel through such course, heating the air in its travelthrough such course, and recirculating the air through a courseincluding more or less of the first course, and in such recirculation ofthe air re-humidifying and re-heating the air or heating the air withouthumidification or circulating the air without re-humidification orre-heating.

2. In an apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, anair entrance duct, a discharge duct communicating with the interior ofthe vehicle, a chamber between said ducts, means in said chamber forsuccessively filtering and temperature conditioning the air, means fordrawing air into the chamber and through the conditioning means fromsaid duct and from the interior of the vehicle and for discharging thesame through the discharge duct into the vehicle and re-circulating theair from the vehicle and through said discharge duct, and meanscontrolling such recirculation of the air to cause the air to be actedon by the filtering and temperature conditioning means or the latteralone or to flow through the chamber without being acted upon by saidfiltering or temperature conditioning means.

3. An apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehiclecomprising means for admit ting fresh air and re-circulating the air inthe vehicle, means for humidifying and purifying the air, means fortemperature conditioning the air, and means for causing there-circulated air'to pass or not through the humidifying and purifyingand temperature conditioning zones or to pass through the second-namedzone without passing through the first-named zone.

4. The method of conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, whichconsists in passing the air through a course, purifying and moistureconditioning the air in its travel through such course, temperatureconditioning the air in its travel through such course, andre-circulating the air through a course including more or less of thefirst course, and in said re-circulation of the air re-purifying andmoisture conditioning and retemperature conditioning the air ortemperature conditioning the air without moisture conditioning orcirculating the air without moisture conditioning or temperatureconditioning.

5. The method of conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, whichconsists in passing the air through a course, filtering the air in itspassage through such course, cooling the air in its travel through suchcourse, and re-circulating the air through a course including more orless of the first course, and in such re-circulation of the airre-filtering and re-cooling the air or cooling the air without filteringor circulating the air without filtering or cooling.

6. In a cooling and ventilating system for railway cars, an air ductextending through the upper portion of the car and provided with aplurality of spaced outlets leading into the space within the car, arefrigerating element, an air circulating blower, two air inlets to theblower, one leading directly from the space within the car, and theother leading through the refrigerating element, and means foralternatively opening and closing these inlets.

means 7. In a cooling and ventilating'system for railway cars, an airduct extending through the upper portion of the car and provided with aplurality of spaced outlets leading into the space within the car, arefrigerating element, an air circulating blower, two air inlets to theblower, one leading directly from the space within the car, and theother leading through the refrigerating element, and thermostaticallycontrolled means for alternately opening one inlet and closing the otherin accordance with temperature conditions existing within the car.

8. "in a cooling and ventilating system for railway cars, an air ductexmnding through the upper portion of the car and provided with aplurality of spaced outlets leading into the space within the car, arefrigerating element, an air circulating blower, a chamber in which there= frigerating element is positioned having an outlet leading throughthe blower and an inlet leading from the space within the car, a secondair inlet leading directly from the space within the car to the blower,closures for the two inlets, a motor for alternatively opening oneclosure and simultaneously closing the other, and a thermostatpositioned within the car for controlling the motor.

9. In an apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, aconditioning compartment in the vehicle separate from the passengercompartment, means for admitting fresh air to said conditioningcompartment, distributing ducts for discharging the air from theconditioning com partment at intervals throughout the car, a purifyingand humidifying device in the condtitioning compartment, a temperatureconditioning device in the conditioning compartment, means forselectively supplying a conditioning agent to the temperatureconditioning device to adapt the same to heat or cool the air, means fordrawing fresh air into the compartment and recirculating air frombetween the conditioning and passenger compartments, and means forlay-passing the circulating air in the conditioning compartment to cutout the purifying and temperature conditioning device or both of saiddevices.

10. In an apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, aconditioning compartment in the vehicle separate from the passengercontaining compartment, means for admitting fresh air to saidconditioning compartment, distributing ducts for discharging the airfrom the conditioning compartment at intervals through the passengercontaining compartment, a water spray purifying and humidifying devicein the conditioning compartment, an air temperature conditioning devicein the conditioning compartment, means for temperature conditioningwater and supplying the same to the purifying and humidifying device,means for selectively supplying a temperature conditioning agent to thetemperature conditioning device to heat or cool the same,

means for drawing fresh air into the compartment and recirculating airfrom between the condi tioning and passenger compartments, and means forby-passing the circulating air in the conditioning compartment to cutout the purifying and moisture conditioning device or both of saiddevices.

11. In an apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, aconditioning compartment in the vehicle separate from the passengercompertinent thereof, an air inlet from the passenger compartment of thevehicle to said conditioning compartment, an air duct extending alongthe nger compartment for discharging air from the conditio compaent atintervals throughout the passenger compartment of the vehicle, a freshair inlet to the conditioning compartment, means for pro-heating the airentering throh said inlet, means in the conditioning compartment forpurifying and humidifying the air, means in the conditioning compartmentfor temperature conditioning the purified and humidified air, means forcirculating air between and through the compartments, and means forbypassing the air through parts of the conditioning compartment to cutoff both the purifying and huming means and the temperature conditiogmeans or the purifying and humidifying means alone, at will.

it. The method of conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, whichconsists in passing the air through course including humidiiying andheat zones, and recirculating the'air and passing it through the heatingzone without passing it through the humidifying zone or without passingit through either of said zones.

13. The method of conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, whichconsists in circulating pretreated air through a course, drawing freshair into the vehicle, pro-heating such fresh air, g the pro-heated freshair with pro-treated circulating air, humidifying and purifying the airand further heating the air to an intended temperature in its travelthrough said course, and then re-circulating the air through a courseincluding more or less of the first course, and in such re-circulationshunting the air out of the hdifying and purifying and heating zones ofthe course.

it. An apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehiclecomprising a conditioning chamber having inlet and outlet ends, spacedmoisture conditioning and temperature condi= tioning devices in saidchamber and in the stated order between said ends, means for admittingfresh air to said chamber and recirculating the air between the chamberand a passenger compartment in the vehicle, passages respectivelyconnecting the inlet and outlet ends of the chamher and space betweenthe moisture and temperature conditioning devices therein and thepassenger compartment, and means selectively con trolling the flow ofthe recirculating air through said passages.

15. An apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehiclecomprising a conditioning compartment in the vehicle, means foradmitting fresh air to said compartment and recirculating the airthrough a course between said compartment and a passenger compartment inthe vehicle, means in the conditioning compartment for purifying theair, temperature conditioning means in the conditioning compartment, andmeans for causing the recirculating air to pass through both the airpurifying and temperature conditioning means or through the latter aloneor to flow through the chamber without passing through either of them.

16. An apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehiclecomprising a conditioning chamber having inlet and outlet ends, spacedmoisture and temperature conditioning devices in said chamber and in theorder stated between said ends, means for admitting fresh air to saidchamber and recirculating the air between the chamber and a passengercompartment in the vehicle, passages respectively connecting the inletand outlet ends of the chamber and space beiii tween the moisture andtemperature conditioning devices therein with the passenger compartment,shutters governing the flow of air through the respective passages, andhumidity and temperature controlling devices governing said shutters.

17. In an apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, aconditioning compartment in the vehicle, an air inlet from the passengercontaining compartment of the vehicle, to said conditioning compartment,a duct for discharging the air from the compartment at intervalsthroughout the vehicle, spaced devices in the conditioning compartmentfor respectively and successively filtering and temperature conditioningthe air, means for supplying a cooling or heating agent to thetemperature conditioning device, passages connecting the conditioningcompartment with the passenger containing compartment of the vehiclebefore, after and between the filtering and temperature controllingdevices, and means controlling the air to flow through the first andsecond passages, 'or the first and third passages, or the third passagealone.

18. The method of conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, whichconsists in passing the air through a course including pre-heating,filtering and humidifying and heating of cooling zones, all in the roofzone of the car, driving the air through one or more ducts extendinglongitudinally in the half roof deck of the car and distributing ittherefrom at intervals into the car and recirculating the air andpassing it through the heating or cooling zone without passing itthrough the filtering and humidifying zone or without passing it througheither of said zones.

19. An apparatus for conditioning air and continuously distributing itat difierent points in the space occupied by passengers in a railwaycar, comprising a conditioning chamber in the roof zone at one end ofthe car, filtering and temperature conditioning devices in said chamber,means adapting said temperature conditioning device for heating orcooling actions at will, means for circulating the air through a courseincluding said filtering and conditioning devices and one or more ductsarranged in the half deck zone of the car and having outlets fordischarging the air at intervals throughout the passenger space of thecar, and shutters arranged to adapt the air on recirculation to bypassthe filtering device or by-pass both the filtering device and theconditioning device.

20. In an apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle, aconditioning compartment in the vehicle having an inlet end, an airhumidifying and purifying device in said compartment and communicatingwith the inlet end thereof, an air temperature conditioning device insaid compartment between the outlet end thereof and the air purifyingand humidifying device, ducts communicating with the outlet end of theconditioning compartment for distributing the air at intervalsthroughout the vehicle, a damper controlled passage between the vehicleand inlet end of the conditioning compartment, a damper controlledpassage between the vehicle and that part of the conditioningcompartment containing the temperature conditioning device, a dampercontrolled passage between the vehicle and the outlet end of theconditioning compartment, an air suction and discharge device in theoutlet end of the conditioning compartment and commimicating with thedistributing ducts, means for automatically controlling the two firstnamed dampers according to the humidity and temperature of the air inthe vehicle, and means for automatically closing the third damper whenthe second damper is opened, and opening the third damper when thesecond damper is closed.

21. Apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle comprisinga conditioning chamber embodying filtering and temperature conditioningmeans mounted in the roof zone of the vehicle, means adapting saidtemperature conditioning means for cooling or heating actions, arecirculated air passage connecting with the passenger space and theintake side of said chamber, an outside air passage connecting with theintake side of said chamber, a by-pass air passage connecting with thepassenger space and the output side of said chamber, a supply ductarranged in the roof zone of the vehicle and extending longitudinallythereof having a plurality of spaced openings through which theconditioned air is discharged into the passenger space, and means forpassing the air through said chamber and driving it through said duct.

22. Apparatus for conditioning the air in a passenger vehicle comprisinga conditioning chamber embodying filtering and temperature conditioningmeans mounted in the roof zone of the vehicle, means adapting saidtemperature conditioning means for cooling or heating actions, arecirculated air passage connecting with the passenger space and theintake side of said chamber, an outside air passage connecting with theintake side of said chamber, a by-pass air passage connecting with thepassenger space and the output side of said chamber, a supply ductarranged in the roof zone of the vehicle and extending longitudinallythereof having a plurality of spaced openings through which theconditioned air is discharged into the passenger space, and a fan havingits intake side connected to the output side of said chamber and to saidby-pass duct and having its output side connected to said supply duct.

JESSE H. DAVIS.

